Canadian Salad (also known as Wisconsin Scramble or any number of other things depending on where it’s being played) is a trick-taking game for three to six players. On each hand, players have a different objective, hoping to avoid certain cards that count against them. On the final hand of the game, all of the cards to avoid from previous hands all count against them at once—meaning the players have quite a lot to dodge!

Object of Canadian Salad

The object of Canadian Salad is to score the fewest points by avoiding the point-scoring cards or tricks in each hand..

Setup

Canadian Salad uses a standard 52-card deck of playing cards. It’s always a good idea to play with Denexa 100% Plastic Playing Cards if you’ve got ’em (and if you don’t, why not?). Some cards are removed depending on the number of players, to make the deal come out evenly. When playing with three players, remove the 2♣. With five, take out the 2♣ and 2♦. Playing with six, remove 2-3♣-2-3♦. For a four-player game, use the full 52-card deck. In addition to cards, you’ll need something to keep score with, like pencil and paper.

Shuffle and deal the cards out evenly to each player, using the whole deck.

Game play

The player to the dealer’s left leads to the first trick. If able to follow suit, a player must do so. If they are unable to, they may play any card. The trick is won by the highest card of the suit led. Cards rank in their usual order, with aces high. Upon winning a trick, the player collects the cards and adds them to a won-trick pile. If knowing the number of tricks won is necessary at the end of the hand (i.e. on the first and sixth hands), each trick may be placed at right angles to the previous one to keep them separated. The player that wins each trick then leads to the next one.

Each hand has a different condition for awarding points. Since everyone’s trying to avoid points, these are the things you want to keep from taking. What gets you points on each hand:

On the first hand, each trick captured scores ten points.

Each heart captured on the second hand scores ten points.

Each queen captured on the third hand scores 25 points.

Capturing the K♠ on the fourth hand scores 100 points.

Whoever takes the fifth hand’s last trick scores 100 points.

On the sixth and final hand, all of the scoring conditions on hands one through five apply.

Each hand is scored after the final trick has been played. After the sixth hand, whoever has the lowest score is the winner.

About this blog

This blog is a product of Denexa Games. Here, you'll find the rules to many card games, both popular and obscure, as well as advice for hosting your own home game night, plus etiquette tips to keep your games running smoothly. We also share news about the company that you'll hopefully find interesting.

Sign up for our email service today. We’ll send you The Denexa Book of Card Games, a 493-page e-book with the rules to over 180 card games, including the old classics, plus children’s games, solitaire games, and games you’ve probably never heard of before.

After that, you’ll also get the freshest posts from our blog, meaning you’ll get:

Rules to new games to share with your friends

Tips for hosting an awesome game night

Information about the hottest Denexa products

Email-exclusive discounts on our products

All sent directly to your inbox. All totally free. We’ll never share your email address with anyone else. And you can have us stop if you ever want to. (But you won’t want to.)